SEO Tips For Your Music Web Site

SEO Tips
You're an online beat maker, therefore you have a site where you showcase your product for consumers to buy. Whether it be soundclick, myflashstore or your own personal web page--optimizing it for search engines is the key to getting more traffic and more traffic equals more sells. Assuming that you already have the "On Page" optimization looking good with information and keywords describing your site in no less than 250 words, that's just the tip of the SEO iceberg. Off page search engine optimization is the bread and butter to getting your page ranked high and overflowing with traffic. Things such as Forum marketing, article marketing, blogging etc, they're all forms of one way links and that's the most important factor to your site's success.

What Is SEO?
Search Engine Optimization is just a fancy word for popularity contest. The more people that recommend you for a certain keyword, the higher your search engine positions will be. For example, if someone Google the term hip hop beats and you only have 100 sites saying that's what you have but your competition has 5,000 then he will get all your traffic because he's more popular than you. It's sad but true. Just think about all the money and prospects you're losing every single day. However there is no magic formula that will sky rocket you up the search engine listings but there's a formula you can use to speed up the process.

The One Way Link Formula
The formula is simple--have a high quality, well managed, user friendly information rich site and be proactive everywhere you go. Doing those two things will build up your one way links exponentially. Webmasters will link to your site because you offer valuable information that will benefit their viewers. Being proactive everywhere you go means participating in everything that has to do with music and leaving your link along with valuable information that contributes to the site. Webmasters will also place your information from those sites on theirs thus giving you another one way link. Before you know it, you will have thousands of one way links and your site will get more traffic as a result of better rankings and more traffic means more sells. You can find out who links to you by just simply Googling your domain name--if you've been proactive all around the internet it'll surprise you how many one way links you already have.

Top 20 Lionel Richie and The Commodores Hits

Lionel Brockman Richie Jr. was born in Tuskegee, Alabama, in 1949. He was raised on the campus of Tuskegee Institute where his grandfather worked. He received a tennis scholarship and attended Tuskegee Institute where he graduated with a degree in economics.

During the mid 1960's, Lionel was a member of a number of R&B groups. He joined The Jays in 1968 as their vocalist and saxophonist. Because the name The Jays was too close to The O'Jays, they changed their name to The Commodores. Other original members in The Commodores included, William King, Thomas McClary, Milan Williams, Ronald LaPread, and Walter "Clyde" Orange.

Motown Records signed The Commodores to be an opening act for The Jackson Five, but soon they became an extremely popular soul group on their own.

By the early 1980's, Lionel was penning songs for other artists, including, Kenny Rogers, who took Lionel's composition "Lady" to number one on Billboard's Singles Charts. He was also recording solo in the early eighties and he officially left The Commodores in 1983. He was replaced with Skyler Jett as the lead singer.

In 1985, he teamed with Michael Jackson to write and record "We Are The World" as part of the USA For Africa ensemble.

On the charts, Lionel, as a solo artist and with The Commodores hit the Top 40 charts thirty times and went to number one on seven occasions. Here are the Top 10 Lionel Richie hits and the Top 10 Commodores hits, according to Billboard's Weekly Top 40 charts.

Lionel Richie

1. Endless Love - 1981 - Lionel's first solo effort was actually a duet with Diana Ross, from the film of the same title and went to number one for nine weeks.

2. All Night Long (All Night) - 1983 - He performed this #1 song at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles and, more recently, on the finale of American Idol in 2009.

3. Say You, Say Me - 1985 - More movie music, this time from the film "White Knights" starring Mikhail Baryshnikov and Gregory Hines.

4. Hello - 1984 - The third single from the "Can't Slow Down" album, which spawned five Top 10 singles.

5. Truly - 1982 - From his first solo album, this song won Lionel a Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocalist Performance.

6. Dancing On The Ceiling - 1986 - The music video to this song is reminiscent to the 1951 Fred Astaire film, "Royal Wedding" and features cameos by comedians Rodney Dangerfield and Cheech Marin.

7. Stuck On You - 1984 - In addition to this single going to number 3 on the pop charts, it also peaked at #24 on the Country charts.

8. You Are - 1983 - Co-written by his then wife, Brenda Harvey, this single reportedly features backing vocals by Richard Marx.

9. My Love - 1983 - Harmony vocals on this single is done by Lionel's good friend, country singer, Kenny Rogers.

10. Running With The Night - 1984 - Guitar solo on this song is done by Steve Lukather from the group Toto.

The Commodores

1. Three Times A Lady - 1978 - Their biggest hit went to #1 for two weeks and was written by Robert Farthing, who was inspired when his father made a comment about his mother.

2. Still - 1979 - The Commodores only other number one single came from their "Midnight Magic" album.

3. Nightshift - 1985 - The only Top 10 single without Lionel Richie, the song is a dedication to singers Marvin Gaye and Jackie Wilson. A new version was recorded in 2010 to include Michael Jackson.

4. Oh No - 1981 - The last single featuring Lionel Richie on leads came from their "In The Pocket" album.

5. Easy - 1977 - This song has been covered by artists like Clarence Carter, Richie Havens, Taylor Hicks and Faith No More.

6. Sail On - 1979 - The only other Top 10 single from the "Midnight Magic" album.

7. Sweet Love - 1976 - Their first Top 10 single went to #5 on the weekly charts.

8. Brick House - 1977 - The lyrics were written by member and trumpet player William King's wife, Shirley, and features drummer Walter "Clyde" Orange on lead vocals.

9. Just To Be Close To You - 1976 - From their "Hot On The Tracks" album.

10. Lady (You Bring Me Up) - 1981 - The first hit single from the "In The Pocket" album.

Not without controversy, in 1988, Lionel and Diane Alexander were attacked in a Beverly Hills hotel room, by Lionel's college sweetheart and wife since 1975, Brenda Harvey. They divorced in 1993. During their marriage, they adopted Nicole Camille Escovedo and changed her name to Nicole Richie. Fashion designer and television personality, Nicole Richie is most noted for her role on the reality series, "The Simple Life."

Over the years, Lionel has become an activist for breast cancer and has raised over three million dollars for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

Lionel Richie hasn't had a top forty hit since 1992, but he continues to record and many of his singles do well on Billboard's Adult Contemporary Charts and he still tours. He can be seen, in 2011, on the reality TV show, "Who Do You Think You Are?"

The Commodores also continue to record and tour, but never cracked the top 40 again, since "Nightshift." They were inducted into The Vocal Group Hall Of Fame in 2003.

Buying Rap Beats Online

Rap Beats Online
I'm assuming you're a hip hop recording artist and you love to make music. Everyone knows that in this day and age an aspiring artist such as yourself must consistently interact on the internet. The internet will bring you tons of new fans and brand your name to A&R agents. However, before you begin marketing yourself to create brand awareness you must have a substantial amount of high quality music. This is where buying rap beats online come into play.

Finding Beats That Fit You
Being that you're an aspiring hip hop artist you probably don't have the funds to pay Timbaland to make a beat for you. However, there are tons of beat makers/producers online that will give you the same bangers as Timbaland. The only difference is that their name's aren't branded and marketed like Timbaland's. There are tons of sites where you can find these online producers. Sites like SoundClick, SoundcCloud, and even Reverbnation--but how can you filter out the producers that don't cater to your style? Just Google search the keywords along with your style, something like "dirty south rap beats" or "r&b instrumentals." Doing a keyword Google search will also bring up a lot of producers with personal websites and these are the serious producers that I encourage you to buy from.

Leasing and Exclusive Rights
After finding some instrumentals you would like to invest in, you must first compare and contrast the rights to the beat(s). All beats come with options which directly affects the price of the instrumental. The first option is leasing rights, buying leasing rights to a beat is like renting a car, you can use it but you don't actually own it. Leasing rights are the most affordable because the beat maker still owns full rights to the beat but what you're allowed to do with the beat may vary between different producers. The second option is exclusive rights, this option gives you all the rights to the beat and is much more expensive. Exclusive beats are usually closed by written contract to show that you can legally do whatever you want with the instrumental. If you plan on making it in the hip hop industry, buying beats online is inevitable. It's an investment towards your future so never look at it as a waste of money. A great song with cold lyrics on top of a hot beat will get you more exposure than you'll know what to do with.

Musicians Are Often Unreal

Musicians Have Rights

I know that this is a continuous issue. However, I do fee that there are several rights which a musician should have access to. There certainly are other products that nether the musician nor anyone else, really, should have access.

Some Of The Negatives

It is often easier to approach things from the negative aspect.

Musicians try very hard to be a part of society and live accordingly. However, the nature of the profession prohibits a musician's being a part of the bulk of society which considers Monday to Friday as the work week and the hours of from 9 to 5 each of those days making up the time requirements.

Obviously a musician who tries to live in this way is doomed. The lucrative time is often both weekends and nights. Consequently being a human being who can each week look forward to having time over which he has control from roughly 5pm on Friday to 9am on Monday is just not what being a musician can have and/or enjoy.

A musician will rehearse and perform with the schedule possibly being different each day. Also since the audience is made up of people who have the weekend that they can devote to leisure and pleasure the musician must often work during this time because much of the audience comes from that part of the population which has from 5pm on Friday until 9am on Monday to do what they would like without restrictions of job, livelihood or employment.

Of course in addition to the rehearsals which may be in the morning or in the afternoon or at times in the evening, the musician is expected to practice his craft in between rehearsals and/or performances.

For instance take the worthy musician who is trying to do his job well and has a job in the pit of an opera house. He also has a young family and a wife who are in that world Monday to Friday and more or less 9 to 5. In that framework he is supposed to be able to be a husband, a father, a gardener and in general anything else that is required of the head of the household.

However, conflict will occur when everyone else on the block can have a Saturday BBQ while the musician has both a matinee and evening performance. If he is lucky enough to live close to the venue he might get home for a quick bite at dinner time.

Conclusion

It would be lovely to be able to be a musician and a human being at the same time. However, fate is against us. We have to learn to cope with being involved in a life's work which we love but which does not lend itself to anything outside itself.

Consequently, I feel that musicians are in fact just misunderstood human beings.

Top 20 Bon Jovi Hits

Formed in Sayreville, New Jersey, in 1983, Bon Jovi consists of lead singer, Jon Bon Jovi, Tito Torres, Richie Sambora, Dave Bryan and Hugh McDonald. They were originally going to call themselves Johnny Electric, but a friend suggested the name Bon Jovi, in the vein of Van Halen.

They recorded their first album in 1984, which spawned their first top forty single, "Runaway." Their second album, "7800 Degrees Fahrenheit", in 1985, failed to produce any top forty singles, but, in 1986, they released their third album, "Slippery When Wet." This album gave then their first number one single on Billboard's weekly charts and it became the biggest selling album of the year.

In 1988, they released their "New Jersey" album, but by the time this tour ended, the band was ready for a break. So, the members of the group took a two year hiatus from each other, at which time, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora recorded solo albums.

Jon's was the soundtrack to the movie "Young Guns II", also known as "Blaze Of Glory" and it produced two top forty singles. Incidentally, Jon appeared very briefly in the movie as "the long haired corpse in the coffin."

In 1992, they reunited and released three more albums and by 1997, the members were ready to take another break from each other. But, in 1999, they rejoined forces again and have continued recording and touring ever since.

On the charts, Bon Jovi has had 19 songs to make it into Billboard's weekly charts, including solo efforts by Jon, and have gone to number one five times. Here are Bon Jovi's twenty biggest hits, according to Billboard's Weekly Top 40 Charts.

1. Livin' On A Prayer - 1987 - Their biggest single, from their "Slippery When Wet" album, which produced three top ten singles, went to number one for four weeks.

2. Bad Medicine - 1988 - From their "New Jersey" album, which spawned five top 10 singles.

3. You Give Love A Bad Name - 1986 - In 2009, VH1 has named their first number one single as the 20th greatest hard rock song of all time.

4. Blaze Of Glory - 1990 - From Jon's solo album "Young Guns II", this single got Jon a Golden Globe and an Academy Award nomination. It also features Jeff Beck, Aldo Nova and Randy Jackson on guitars.

5. I'll Be There For You - 1990 - Written by Jon and Richie Sambora, this song was performed by James Durbin on American Idol on March 16, 2011.

6. Born To Be My Baby - 1989 - The music video to this song was shot in black and white.

7. Always - 1994 - Originally written for the film "Romeo Is Bleeding", but after seeing the film, the band opted not to lend the song to the soundtrack.

8. Lay Your Hands On Me - 1989 - Not to be confused with the Thompson Twins 1985 top ten hit, Bon Jovi's song came from their "New Jersey" album.

9. Living In Sin - 1989 - The fifth single from the "New Jersey" album gives them the record for most top 10 singles to come from a rock album.

10. Bed Of Roses - 1992 - From the "Keeping The Faith" album, it's reported that Jon wrote this song while recovering from a hangover in a hotel room.

11. Miracle - The second single from Jon's solo album, "Blaze Of Glory", aka "Young Guns II Soundtrack."

12. This Ain't A Love Song - 1995 - The only hit single from the "These Days" album.

13. Who Says You Can't Go Home - 2005 - From the "Have A Nice Day" album, the song was used in television spots for New Jersey tourism.

14. In These Arms - 1993 - Bon Jovi keyboardist Dave Bryan recorded this song on his solo album "On A Full Moon", in 1995.

15. Midnight In Chelsea - 1997 - This song came from another Jon Bon Jovi solo album, "Destination Anywhere."

16. (You Want To) Make A Memory? - 2007 - From their "Lost Highway" album, this song was nominated for a Grammy Award.

17. Keep The Faith - 1992 - The title song from their fifth studio album, the flip side was "I Wish Every Day Could Be Like Christmas."

18. It's My Life - 2000 - This song references Tommy and Gina, two fictional people used in their "Livin' On A Prayer" hit.

19. Levon - 1992 - Originally recorded and written by Elton John, Jon Bon Jovi claims this to be his favorite song of all time and released it on his solo album, "Two Rooms."

20. Runaway - 1984 - Their first top forty single was written in 1980 and recorded by Jon Bongiovi & The Rest and recorded by Bon Jovi in 1984. Bongiovi is the real spelling of Jon's last name.

Jon has had a successful acting career appearing in the movies, "Destination Anywhere", "Homegrown", "U-571", "Pay It Forward" and he has been cast to appear in the movie "New Year's Eve" with Kathryn Heigl in 2011. His TV appearances include, "Ally McBeal", "The West Wing" and "30 Rock."

Bon Jovi was nominated, in 2010, to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but did not make it. Jon and Richie Sambora were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2009.

Bon Jovi continues to record and perform to sellout stadium crowds all over the world

Modern Rockabilly Fans Turn to Vintage Clothes And Cars To Live The Rockabilly Lifestyle

Rockabilly music is alive and well after almost 60 years on the scene. Modern rockabilly fans keep the music alive by supporting the bands that play it. But these fans don't just buy rockabilly records and go to rockabilly shows. Many of them live the rockabilly lifestyle. They dress in vintage clothing. Decorate their houses with vintage furniture, artwork, and color schemes. They drive classic cars. And of course, they listen to their favorite music on vintage hi-fi equipment. These fans are often referred to as The Rockabillies.

The rockabillies use the trappings of 1950s fashion to express their love for rockabilly music and the good parts of the rockabilly lifestyle. They're not trying to forget that the 1950s had its share of troubles and worries. They're not pretending that the atomic bomb scare never existed or that the rampant fear and hatred of communists wasn't distasteful. They don't pretend that the racism that infected 1950s America wasn't every bit as shameful as we all know it was. Just because they are rockabillies doesn't mean that they live in a world of delusion.

Instead, their love for the 50s culture and look is more an attempt to celebrate what seems good about that era. It represents what appears to us looking back now to have been a simpler, more carefree time. Whether it really was or not isn't really the point. It seems that way. Sporting the 50s look is its own unique brand of cool. It's an easy way to announce to other rockabillies that you are one of them--that you share similar interests and a love for the wonderful art form of rockabilly.

Of course, you don't have to visibly be a rockabilly to enjoy and love rockabilly music. I personally don't live as a rockabilly to any great extent. I do tend toward a rockabilly haircut and I love classic cars as much as the next guy. But I don't go out of my way to dress in 50s fashions (aside from my stage clothes when I'm performing.) Still, I love rockabilly music and (as evidenced by this, my other articles, and my blog) spend a lot of time thinking about it, writing about it, and in general just sharing the joy of the music with anyone who will listen.

But the rockabillies are a special breed. They express their love for the music and the genre outwardly in vivid 1950s colors. When you see a rockabilly, you know instantly what kind of music they love. It's a community. Rockabillies are brothers and sisters in a common quest to keep rockabilly and the 1950s alive. The clothes they wear, cars they drive, and the furniture in their homes simply augment the soundtrack of their lives: The rockabilly music that binds all of us fans together. Whether you are a full-out rockabilly or, like me, simply a fan who loves the music despite generally non-rockabilly appearances, a fan is still a fan. In the end, it's the music that gives us all common ground. The music is our king, we fans are the rockabilly army, and the rockabillies are our proud flag bearers!